V Muraleedharan: The BJP Leader Who Narrowly Broke Marxist Fort In Kerala

The BJP's V Muraleedharan scripted a dramatic comeback in Kerala's Kazhakoottam, turning a past defeat into a sweet revenge that took 10 years to fruitify.

Muraleedharan, the former Union Minister, defeated the sitting minister and CPI (M) leader Kadakampally Surendran by a margin of just 428 votes after a tense counting process that went down to the final rounds.

It was a nail-biting finish as even in the 16th round of counting, Surendran had maintained a slender lead of 171. But the last round's counting centres were bastions of the BJP and led to a narrow victory for the 68-year-old politician who has seen several electoral defeats.

"I have never moved out of this constituency for the last 10 years," Muraleedharan had said during his campaigning.

The result marks a sharp reversal from the 2016 Assembly election, where Muraleedharan had lost to Kadakampally by 7,347 votes.

In the last election, Surendran had won the seat with a commanding margin of 23,387 votes. That stronghold has now been breached, underlining the scale of the shift in Kazhakoottam.

Kazhakoottam's Switch From Left To Right

V Muraleedharan, who had lost the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Thiruvananthapuram, has now managed to draw votes from areas that traditionally favour the Left, weakening the LDF's core pockets.

UDF candidate T Saratchandran Prasad also polled votes from several Left-leaning segments.

Despite a broader UDF wave across the state, the front finished third in Kazhakoottam for the third consecutive time.

Ground Campaign Made The Difference

After his 2016 defeat, V Muraleedharan focused on sustained grassroots work in the constituency. He stayed locally and built a structured campaign, concentrating on regions such as Attipra, Kulathoor and Mankuzhy, which have strong Left influence. The region has a strong vote bank of the Ezhava community that usually supported the Left.

But this time, the community clearly sided. The minority morcha of the party also helped raise votes for the BJP.

Muraleedharan, as the minister of state for external affairs from 2019 to 2024, played a key role in bringing back the remains of the Kerala citizens who died in foreign countries. It is believed that the gesture also helped him garner votes.

The 67-year-old leader also conducted multiple padayatras and direct outreach programmes, gradually expanding his support base. He also brought up the Sabarimala Temple gold loss case during campaigning.

V Muraleedharan's Political Career

V Muraleedharan, a resident of Kozhikode, began his political journey through the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the students' wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

He went on to hold key organisational roles within the BJP and its affiliated bodies.

Over the years, he contested several elections but faced repeated defeats, including in Kozhikode and in the 2016 Assembly polls. 

His national political breakthrough came in 2018 when he entered the Rajya Sabha. In 2019, he was inducted as Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs.

Muraleedharan is known within the party for his organisational work and persistence in Kerala politics.